Design - ****
The design matches the 60's style perfectly. The hefty metal chassis
is solid and tight, and the plastic parts were all designed and manufactured
to fit together tight but clean.
At no point in putting this together was there an issue with
something not fitting, or fitting too tight. The instructions were
easy to follow, even if you aren't a regular modeler.
Difficulty - ****
These little devils aren't going to stretch your modeling skills by any
means, but that's just perfect. I didn't want to end up with a
complicated version of the Batmobile that would take me hours to get just
right. If your not painting these (which you can technically avoid,
although I'd recommend doing a little work), you could easily finish them in
an hour or so tops.
I would pick up a few colors of enamel paint though, and do
a little work on the engine block, some of the small interior pieces and a
little of the exhaust system underneath. It adds to the overall black
of the rest of the vehicle.
But all the crucial exterior paint work that you see in the
photos is already done for you, and there's just the right amount of chrome
parts.
Quality - ****
This car is a thing of beauty! The only metal piece is the outer
chassis itself, but that's to be expected. It's extremely solid, and
the hold opens and closes smoothly.
The black paint work on the exterior was extremely smooth
and consistent, with very little bubbling or bumps.
All the parts went together tightly, and the use of metal
screws to hold some of the more crucial body parts together is a great
design. Just be extremely careful when tightening them not to over
tighten and break the plastic.
This is a very high quality model, with great details,
excellent paint work, and quality plastic parts.
Value - ***1/2
At $17, these are a very good deal. Sure, $15 would have meant four
stars, but even at $17 you're getting a heck of bargain.
The quality is what really sets this value mark above the
usual, and that's something Playing Mantis can be proud of.
